Drew Rosenhaus predicts the first round in NFL supplemental draft for Terrelle Pryor, who apologizes to Ohio State and Jim Tressel

Terrelle Pryor (right) and Drew Rosenhaus had a lot to say on Tuesday, but didn't field any questions from reporters/ Ben Volin

MIAMI BEACH – Drew Rosenhaus can’t believe what he’s hearing.

A middle round pick? For Terrelle Pryor, the former No. 1 college recruit in the nation?

“Are you kidding me?” Rosenhaus said Tuesday afternoon outside Club LIV at the Fontainebleau Hotel, where he and Pryor announced the quarterback’s intentions to enter the NFL’s supplemental draft, to be held sometime in July.

“This is Big Ten football that he has dominated. … He is one of the most gifted quarterbacks that the NFL has seen. For anyone who questions where he’s going to be drafted, I expect him to be a first-round pick in the supplemental draft.”

“I am a firm believer, after 25 years of experience, that Terrelle Pryor will be great – not a good quarterback, a great quarterback in the National Football League.”

Pryor, the embattled former Ohio State quarterback, finally ended six months of silence Tuesday. In addition to announcing his NFL plans, he also apologized “all the Buckeye fans across the country” and gave a “special shoutout” to former coach Jim Tressel for costing him his job.

Tressel resigned last month after the NCAA determined that he knowingly withheld information from investigators about potential rules violations committed by Pryor and other teammates, who had sold memorabilia and received free cars and tattoos. Pryor, who was to serve a five-game suspension next season, instead decided to leave school and enter the NFL. Ohio State awaits sanctions from the NCAA.

“I never meant to hurt anybody directly or indirectly with my conduct off the field,” Pryor said. “Coach Jim Tressel, I love you just like a father. You taught me a lot, and I apologize for putting you in a situation of taking you out of a job, a place that you love to be. I regret the fact that you’re not there anymore, and I regret the fact that I’m not there anymore.”

The news conference lasted a little more than 9 minutes, and neither Pryor nor Rosenhaus fielded any questions from reporters who were invited to the event. A TV reporter from Columbus, Ohio tried to squeeze in a question at the end, but Pryor and Rosenhaus walked away mid-sentence. Rosenhaus spoke for a majority of the time, and was devout in his defense of Pryor.

Pryor was joined by several members of Rosenhaus' entourage, but Rosenhaus did most of the talking / Ben Volin

“I’ve been an agent for 25 years now, and I’m very excited to be working with him,” Rosenhaus said. “He is a young man who is here today expressing tremendous remorse. He is very sad about what has happened to his college career and Ohio State. I can tell you that he’s responsible for the mistakes that he’s made. He’s owned up to them. There’s no excuses here, no excuses at all. But the past is now the past for him, and we have to move ahead.”

Pryor, who stands 6-foot-6 and threw 59 touchdowns in three seasons, said he wants to eventually go back and earn his degree from Ohio State, of which he is nine credits short. And Rosenhaus said Tressel still vouches for Pryor and speaks with him every day.

“I was very touched by what he had to say about Terrelle’s character, his work ethic, his drive and his makeup,” Rosenhaus said. “He talked about him in the same way that you would talk about a son. They talk every day, four to five times a day. There is no way I would be representing him, working with Terrelle, without Jim Tressel’s involvement.”

Pryor is not expected to go higher than the fourth or five round of the supplemental draft – if a team drafts him, it will lose that corresponding pick in next year’s draft – and some observers believe he would be better served switching positions in the NFL. Rosenhaus scoffed at those notions with his trademarked bluster.

“With all the teams that need QBs, you can’t tell me that people are not going to jump on this young man,” Rosenhaus said.

“He’s not gonna make any excuses. He’s gonna tell the teams he made some mistakes, out of maturity. But he has a good heart. I’ve represented a lot of players in the NFL. This young man has character. And he’s going to be a winner in the National Football League.”

“Today, Terrelle worked out with Chad Ochocinco, who’s had a great – in my opinion – Hall of Fame career in the NFL. Chad doesn’t know Terrelle, he never met him before today. In the middle of his workout he came over to me and he said, ‘Are you serious Drew? They’re talking about him not being a quarterback? He is as good as any quarterback I’ve played with.’ He raved about Terrelle.”

“For anyone who questions his arm strength, give me a break. They couldn’t hang on to his football. He’s got as strong an arm as you would want. In terms of his work ethic, he’s gonna get it in, he’s gonna get coached up, he’s gonna get developed and he’s gonna put on a show. He’s gonna put on a show when he works out. He’s gonna run a 4.4 40, he’s gonna jump through the gym. I’m not sure the NFL’s ever had an athlete like this at the quarterback position.”

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[…] certainly hired the right agent in Drew Rosenhaus. The brash agent proclaimed that Pryor would be a first round pick in the supplemental draft. It is a curious proclamation — most teams with quarterback issues […]